Regarding the Inspection and Quarantine Requirements for Export of Pet Food from The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland to China

According to the regulations of the General Administration of Customs of China and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs of the United Kingdom regarding the quarantine and sanitary requirements for the import of British pet food into China, effective immediately, the import of British pet food meeting the following requirements is permitted:

I. Inspection and Quarantine Basis

(1) The Biosafety Law of the People's Republic of China;

(2) The Law of the People's Republic of China on Entry and Exit Animal and Plant Quarantine and its implementing regulations;

(3) The Measures for the Supervision and Administration of Inspection and Quarantine of Imported and Exported Feed and Feed Additives;

(4) The Protocol between the General Administration of Customs of the People's Republic of China and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs of the United Kingdom on Quarantine and Sanitary Requirements for the Import of British Pet Food into China.

II. Scope of Permitted Imported Products

Pet food refers to industrially processed and manufactured products intended for direct consumption by pets (dogs and cats), including dry food, canned food, snacks, and chew toys.

III. Requirements for Manufacturing Enterprises

Manufacturing and processing enterprises exporting pet food to China should meet the following requirements:

(1) Be legally registered and approved by the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA);

(2) Implement a hygiene management system based on Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) principles;

(3) Accept supervision and inspection by DEFRA to ensure that their production and processing continuously comply with DEFRA's safety and hygiene management regulations and are not restricted due to safety and hygiene issues;

(4) Obtain registration with Chinese Customs upon recommendation by DEFRA.

IV. Requirements for Animal Sources

The animals from which pet food is exported to China must meet the following requirements:

(1) They must not be ruminants (except when milk and dairy products are used as raw materials) or aquatic mammals;

(2) They must not be animals illegally hunted or caught;

(3) They must not be animals that have died from animal diseases;

(4) They must not be animals whose movement is restricted or culled due to the control or eradication of animal diseases;

(5) Terrestrial animals must be slaughtered in slaughterhouses approved by the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, and must undergo pre- and post-slaughter inspections to ensure they do not show clinical symptoms of infectious diseases that can be transmitted to animals or humans through the product.

V. Requirements for Raw Materials

1. The raw materials must have passed the safety and hygiene monitoring and testing of the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, comply with relevant UK laws, regulations, and safety and hygiene requirements, and be suitable for use in pet food production.

2. Animal-derived raw materials should meet the following requirements:

(1) They must not contain ruminant-derived ingredients and must not be contaminated by ruminant-derived ingredients (except for milk and dairy products);

(2) They must originate from disease-free areas recognized by the World Organisation for Animal Health and approved by Chinese Customs: for example, cloven-hoofed animal-derived raw materials must originate from foot-and-mouth disease-free areas, and swine-derived raw materials must originate from areas free from classical swine fever, African swine fever, and swine vesicular disease;

(3) Animal-derived raw materials from countries outside the UK must be legally imported, have passed inspection and quarantine by the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, and be legally used in pet food production;

(4) Aquatic raw materials must originate from aquatic animals (excluding aquatic mammals) and by-products generated during the production of products for human consumption, and the source animals must not exhibit symptoms of infectious diseases.

3. Plant-derived raw materials must not contain genetically modified ingredients that have not been approved by the Chinese government.

VI. Production and Processing Requirements

(1) Production enterprises shall organize production in accordance with the hygiene management system approved or recognized by the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, and effectively control key control points in production.

(2) The UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs shall conduct daily supervision of production and processing in accordance with relevant laws and regulations to ensure that the production and processing process continuously complies with the relevant safety and hygiene management regulations of the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the enterprise.

(3) Canned pet food shall be processed using a commercially sterile heat treatment method with an F0 value of not less than 3.0.

(4) Extruded dried pet food shall undergo extrusion drying processing at a core temperature of at least 90°C, or other equivalent processing methods approved by Chinese Customs, to ensure the elimination of risks of highly pathogenic avian influenza, Newcastle disease, and other epidemics.

(5) Other processed pet food shall undergo heat treatment at a core temperature of at least 90°C, or other equivalent processing methods approved by the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and recognized by Chinese Customs, to ensure the elimination of risks of highly pathogenic avian influenza, Newcastle disease, and other epidemics.

(6) Effective measures shall be taken in accordance with the relevant requirements of the hygiene management system during the production process to avoid contamination by unapproved raw materials, foreign matter, etc.

VII. Packaging, Labeling, and Storage and Transportation Requirements

(1) Packaging materials shall be brand new, clean, and have good sealing and moisture-proof properties, and shall not be easily damaged.

(2) Chinese labels shall be affixed to the packaging, and the labels shall comply with the requirements of the Chinese "Regulations on Pet Food Labeling".

(3) The outer packaging must clearly indicate the name and registration number of the manufacturing and processing enterprise, and be marked with the Chinese characters “输往中华人民共和国” and “非供人类食用” or “仅用于宠物食用”.

(4) Effective measures must be taken to prevent contamination during the storage and transportation of pet food.

VIII. Product Requirements

1. Permitted for free sale in the UK and possessing complete traceability;

2. Free from substances prohibited from import under Chinese or British laws and regulations;

3. Not contaminated by unapproved raw materials or ingredients;

4. Free from toxic or harmful substances that endanger animal health and comply with relevant safety and hygiene standards in China and the UK;

5. Before export, five samples shall be randomly selected from each production batch for testing. The test results should meet the following requirements:

(1) Canned pet food meets commercial sterility requirements;

(2) Non-canned pet food must meet the following requirements:

Salmonella: Not detected in 25 grams: n = 5, c = 0, m = 0, M = 0;

Enterobacteria: n = 5, c = 2, m = 10, M = 300 in 1 gram;

Where:

n = Number of samples tested;

c = Number of samples with bacterial counts between m and M. If other samples have bacterial counts of m or less, the sample is still considered acceptable;

m = Bacterial count threshold; if the bacterial count in all samples does not exceed m, the result is considered compliant;

M = Maximum bacterial count; if the bacterial count in a single sample or multiple samples is M or more, the result is considered non-compliant.

IX. Pre-export Inspection and Certificate Requirements

Pet food exported to China shall be inspected and quarantined by the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and issued a health certificate proving that the product complies with the requirements of the Protocol. Each shipment of pet food must be accompanied by a health certificate written in Chinese or English, one original and two copies. X. Import Inspection and Quarantine Requirements

1. Quarantine Approval.

Importing enterprises shall apply for an "Import Quarantine Permit for Animals and Plants" in accordance with relevant regulations.

2. Document Verification.

(1) Verify whether an "Import Quarantine Permit for Animals and Plants" is attached (except for products for which quarantine approval has been cancelled);

(2) Verify whether the product originates from a registered enterprise;

(3) Verify whether the health certificate is authentic and valid.

3. Cargo Inspection.

Chinese Customs, in accordance with relevant laws, administrative regulations, rules, etc., and in conjunction with the requirements of this announcement, shall conduct inspection and quarantine on pet food imported from the UK. Goods that pass inspection and quarantine shall be permitted entry.

4. Handling of Non-Compliant Cases.

(1) Goods will be returned or destroyed if any of the following conditions apply: lack of a valid health certificate; originating from an unregistered UK manufacturer; discrepancy between goods and documentation; detection of unapproved animal-derived ingredients; discovery of soil, animal carcasses, animal excrement, or quarantine pests, making effective quarantine treatment impossible; or labeling that does not meet standards and cannot be corrected.

(2) Goods found to be non-compliant with Chinese pet food hygiene standards will be subject to pest control, return, or destruction.

(3) If loose packages or broken containers are found, the owner or agent is responsible for restoring them to their original condition. If packaging is damaged and poses a risk of spreading animal or plant diseases, the contaminated site, goods, and equipment must be quarantined.

(4) For manufacturers experiencing serious problems or repeated non-compliance issues, Chinese Customs will take measures such as strengthening inspection and quarantine or suspending imports.

GACC